Hoosier State Press Association - The Indiana Publisher - Better Newspaper Contest
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/425501
Page 22 Best News Coverage Under Deadline Pressure/Category 1 First place Teens charged in murders Alan Stewart The Corydon Democrat Comments: Very detailed and well-written account of a hor- rible crime. The perspective of family really rounded out the story. Second place Never forgotten Kevin Lilly Brown County Democrat (Nashville) Comments: Nicely written story on a tight deadline. The emotions of the people close to McQueary are evident in the story. Third place One-man crime wave ends in county Andy Heuring & Alden Heuring The Press-Dispatch (Petersburg) Comments: Plenty of detail in this story. Best News Coverage With No Deadline Pressure/Category 2 First place Indiana's No. 1 … in meth labs Stephanie Taylor Ferriell The Salem Democrat Comments: Strong research and gripping lead paragraphs. Very well-done. Nice map graphic and use of alternate type style heads ("Stop Meth," for example) as well. Second place Co$t of a murder trial Mary Mattingly The Versailles Republica Comments: Good research on an aspect of criminal trials often not reviewed or reported on and local impact. Interest- ing report. Third place No award given. Best Ongoing News Coverage/Category 3 First place Courthouse remonstrance Sara Clifford & Kevin Lilly Brown County Democrat (Nashville) Comments: Detailed and well-researched. Nice job. Second place #QUACKSTRONG Megan O'Bryan & Ben Skirvin Brown County Democrat (Nashville) Comments: Inspirational story. Third place No award given. Division 2 Alan Stewart The Corydon Democrat Two 18-year-old males are behind bars in Floyd County after allegedly murdering a Harrison County couple Saturday morning in what police say was a robbery that went wrong. Formal murder charges were filed in Harrison Superior Court yesterday afternoon (Tuesday), and the suspects are expected to arrive in Harrison County for their initial hearing sometime in the next 48 hours, Harrison County Prosecutor J. Otto Schalk said. Schalk said yesterday during a press conference that he's weighing the death penalty for the suspects. "One of the single most important decisions that I'm tasked with as prosecutor is choosing whether or not to seek the death penalty for an individual, even more so for an 18-year-old. Capital punishment must be reserved for those individuals whose crimes exhibit truly the worst of human nature," Schalk said. "At this point, I would say seeking the death penalty is strongly being considered. However, I will not make such a decision arbitrarily." According to Chief Wayne Kessinger of the Harrison County Sheriff's Dept., in the early morning hours Saturday, Kevin (Drew) Schuler, of the 11900 block of Nadorff Road in Greenville, and Austin Bryan Nelson Chancelor Scott, who resides in New Albany, were riding a four-wheeler that was sputtering and running low on fuel. They stopped at a house along Nadorff Road to try and get some gasoline but decided the house was too close to the road and moved on to look for fuel at a home in the 9100 block of Walk Drive near Greenville. According to a family member of one of the victims, a neighbor reported seeing Schuler on the Walk Drive property sometime Friday; when the neighbor asked what he was doing, Schuler allegedly drove off. Police said Schuler and Scott did eventually enter the home of Asenath (Senie) Arnold, 57, and Gary L. Henderson, 70. The front door lock appeared to have been broken in, and the rear door was unlocked, so it's unclear as to which door the pair used to gain access, Kessinger said. Kessinger said one of the Stephanie Taylor Ferriell The Salem Democrat Young children being carried away, crying and screaming for their parents, as those parents are handcuffed and placed into the backs of police cars. Adults who haven't worked in years, too strung out, too addicted to even consider seeking meaningful employment, much less having the ability to pass a drug test. Homes burglarized, the perpetrators snatching whatever they can unload easily and quickly, desperate to find the cash for their next fix. A once youthful and attractive 25-year-old who now looks twice her age; skin sagging, teeth rotting, body rail-thin. This is what meth does. It devastates lives, destroys families and jeopardizes a community's future. And the problem isn't getting any better. In fact, in Indiana, it seems to be only growing worse. The Indiana State Police Meth Suppression Section last week released 2013 meth lab statistics. Statewide, there were 1,808 meth lab seizures last year. That's 82 more than in 2012. The MSS said, based on information received from other states, Indiana will be first in the country in clandestine meth lab incidents for 2013. While the increase in labs being seized is positive, Washington County Prosecutor Dustin Houchin said the increase isn't exactly good news. "Being number one in the nation is a dubious distinction of our state," he said, noting that Madison County, Indiana, led the nation in number of meth labs seized in 2012. "I think there were 91," said Houchin. "That's just stunning." The state has tried to head off the problem, but has taken a tentative approach. The legislature restricted the amount of products containing pseudoephedrine, commonly found in cold and allergy medications, a person Teens charged in murders Courthouse remonstrance Indiana's No. 1 ... in meth labs For complete story, see www.hspafoundation.org. Click on "Contests." For complete story, see www.hspafoundation.org. Click on "Contests." Sara Clifford & Kevin Lilly Brown County Democrat (Nashville) If you want to sign a petition for or against remodeling and expanding the Brown County Courthouse, you have less than a week to beat the deadline of 4 p.m. Monday, Sept. 9. Clerk Beth Mulry said there has been a steady flow of people coming in to get petitions since the signature-gathering window opened Aug. 9. She declined to release the number of petitions picked up so far because she did not want to influence the remonstrance by indicating one side had gotten more petitions than the other. The Brown County Commissioners are seeking a 15-year loan not to exceed $8.25 million to cover the cost of renovating the existing courthouse and adding a two-story addition, possibly with a town funded public restroom facing Van Buren Street. About 200 Brown County taxpayers delayed the loan- seeking process by gathering enough signatures against the loan to force a petition race, or remonstrance. As is generally practiced in Indiana government, the commissioners advertised a not-to-exceed amount of $8.25 million, which has created a stir among some Brown County residents. The estimated cost of project is $6.5 million, but that does not include roughly $1 million in architectural and financing fees, furnishings and other costs, such as demolition of the current Brown County prosecutor's office. Commissioner Joe Wray is carrying a petition in support of the project. He said he believes the design by architect Burt Perdue is the county's best option to address security, space constraints and compliance with the Americans with For complete story, see www.hspafoundation.org. Click on "Contests."